Warriors' Lee eager for games that count

warriors

Updated 10:47 pm, Monday, March 11, 2013

Forward David Lee walks gingerly off the floor after injuring his knee Friday against the Rockets.

Forward David Lee walks gingerly off the floor after injuring his knee Friday against the Rockets.

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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Golden State Warriors forward David Lee (12) shoots between two Houston Rockets defenders in the first half of their NBA basketball game Friday, March 8, 2013, in Oakland Calif.

Golden State Warriors forward David Lee (12) shoots between two Houston Rockets defenders in the first half of their NBA basketball game Friday, March 8, 2013, in Oakland Calif.

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

Warriors' Lee eager for games that count

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The Warriors are officially listing David Lee as "questionable" for Monday's game against New York, but anyone who has paid much attention to the power forward's track record knows that he should almost always be deemed "probable."

"If I can walk, I'm going to play," Lee said, hobbling through the locker room Saturday night after doctors said he couldn't suit up for the Warriors' 103-93 loss to Milwaukee because of a badly bruised and swollen right knee.

Lee has plenty of motivation to convince doctors to lift the restraints when the staggering Warriors host his old team Monday, and he's made a career of playing through pain in games of far less meaning.

Coming into this season, Lee was considered a model of consistency - averaging a near double-double in his seven-season career, but he had never led a team to the playoffs. His teams were a combined 199-359 (.357), and his teams had never won more than 36 games in a season.

On Feb. 4, Lee was posting his usual automatic numbers and had the Warriors at 30-17 - within a half-game of fourth place in the Western Conference and comfortably sitting 8 1/2 games clear of the 10th-place Lakers. Now the Warriors (35-29) have plummeted to seven games back of fifth place and lead the eighth-place Lakers by two games.

"For me, it's a no-excuse situation," Lee said. "I've wanted to be in this situation for a long time. I've been through a lot of years when these games didn't matter. Now they matter, and I'm going to have a blast.

"Until they drag me off the court, I'm going to be excited to go out there and play."

Warriors coach Mark Jackson believes that Lee's efforts last season set the tone for the mental adjustment needed for a stretch run this year. With the Warriors' experienced players dropping one by one to injuries, Lee kept suiting up and producing despite a strained groin.

He played the ninth-most minutes in the league and finished 12th in points and rebounds. His groin injury eventually created a stress reaction that required surgery to repair torn abdominal and abductor muscles.

"We had nothing to play for and got to a point where everyone was hurt, but he kept playing until he couldn't anymore," Jackson said. "It's something I appreciated as a coach because of the way he led and the way he didn't quit."

After Lee banged knees with Thomas Robinson on Friday night, the Warriors power forward said he could barely plant his right foot. His mobility was limited because of the soreness and swelling, but he trotted out of the locker room to start the second half.

"Initially, we thought he was done," Jackson said. "His words exactly to me were: 'I've waited eight years for this.' He's a gamer. He went and battled. He wasn't 100 percent, but he gave us what he had."

That's what Lee has done all season, posting his customary 18.9 points on 51.5 percent field-goal shooting to go along with 11.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He leads power forwards and centers in minutes played and the entire league with 22 games of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds and 41 double-doubles.

More importantly, he's showed more of a willingness to mix it up and embrace contact for a team that needed to develop a tougher identity.

"I know that I've changed some people's opinions," Lee said.

For a lot of people, Lee has gone from questionable to probable.

Monday's game

Of note: New York has won six of its past eight games, including a 109-105 victory over the Warriors on Feb. 27 - when Tyson Chandler grabbed a season-high 28 rebounds, but few noticed because Stephen Curry scored 54 points on a franchise-record 11 three-pointers. ... The league's second-best scorer, Carmelo Anthony, has missed the past three games with an injured right knee. ... Amar'e Stoudemire had averaged 20 points and 7.7 rebounds in the three games before Saturday, when the Knicks announced he will miss six weeks after minor right knee surgery. ... Swingman J.R. Smith is averaging career bests in scoring (16.6), rebounds (5.1) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.9). ... The Warriors have beaten the Knicks in 15 of the teams' past 20 meetings, including nine of the past 10 times at Oracle Arena.

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